Hanson’s intent in 1930 to write music that was “young in spirit, lyrical and romantic in temperament”, was fully realised in his ardent SecondSymphony. This, his best known symphonic statement, acknowledges a Sibelian inheritance through horn fanfares, powerfully lyric string writing, and a sense of unity both all-embracing and memorable. LuxAeterna is a rhapsodic, strongly modal work for viola and orchestra, richly repaying Hanson’s interest in Palestrina. Mosaics is a much later set of variations revealing his organisational control and expressive power. “Richly drawn is the SecondSymphony—the Romantic, its second movement anthem beloved of millions of Americans. [Schwarz’s] feeling for long-term growth is possibly the surest of all, leading us from one resolution to the next with an increasing sense of expectation.” (Gramophone on the original Delos release)